| The Hunchback of Notre Dame | |
|---|---|
&sq=Qlik&lang=&file=File:The_Hunchback_of_Notre_Dame_1996_poster.jpg) Theatrical release poster by John Alvin[1] | |
| Directed by | |
| Screenplay by | |
| Story by | Tab Murphy |
| Based on | The Hunchback of Notre-Dame by Victor Hugo |
| Produced by | Don Hahn |
| Starring | |
| Edited by | Ellen Keneshea |
| Music by | Alan Menken |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Buena Vista Pictures Distribution[a] |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 91 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $70 million[2] |
| Box office | $325.3 million[3] |
The Hunchback of Notre Dame is a 1996 American animated musical drama film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It is loosely based on the 1831 novel of the same name by Victor Hugo. The film was directed by Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise and produced by Don Hahn, from a screenplay written by Tab Murphy, Irene Mecchi, Jonathan Roberts, and the writing team of Bob Tzudiker and Noni White. Featuring the voices of Tom Hulce, Demi Moore, Tony Jay, and Kevin Kline, the film follows Quasimodo, the deformed and confined bell-ringer of Notre Dame, and his yearning to explore the outside world and be accepted by society, against the wishes of his cruel, puritanical foster father Claude Frollo, who also wants to exterminate Paris' Roma population.
In 1993, David Stainton, then a development executive at Disney Feature Animation, conceived the idea to adapt Victor Hugo's Gothic fiction novel into an animated feature. He subsequently pitched the idea to then-Disney Studios chairman Jeffrey Katzenberg. At Katzenberg's request, Trousdale, Wise, and Hahn joined the project in 1993. Murphy wrote the first draft of the script, and Mecchi and Roberts, who had rewritten the script for The Lion King (1994), were soon brought in. Additional rewrites were provided by Tzudiker and White. That same year, the production team embarked on a research trip to Paris to study the Notre-Dame cathedral and additional locations for the film.[4] The musical score was composed by Alan Menken, with songs written by Menken and lyricist Stephen Schwartz.
The Hunchback of Notre Dame premiered at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans on June 19, 1996, and was released in the United States on June 21. It is considered different from Disney's other films due to its mature themes such as infanticide, lust, antiziganism, and genocide, despite the changes made from the original source material in order to ensure a G rating from the MPAA.[5] The film received generally positive reviews and was a commercial success, grossing over $325 million worldwide and becoming the fifth highest-grossing film of 1996. It was nominated for an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award for its musical score. A stage adaptation of the film was produced by Walt Disney Theatrical in 1999. A direct-to-video sequel, The Hunchback of Notre Dame II, was released in 2002.
- ^ Stewart, Jocelyn (February 10, 2008). "Artist created many famous film posters". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on March 14, 2010. Retrieved February 10, 2008.
- ^ Bates, James; Apodaca, Patrice (June 20, 1996). "Stalking the King of Animation". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on June 24, 2021. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
- ^ "The Hunchback of Notre Dame". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on June 10, 2003. Retrieved January 5, 2012.
- ^ Thomas 1997, pp. 156–157.
- ^ Bahr, Sarah (June 21, 2021). "'The Hunchback of Notre Dame' at 25: 'The Most R-Rated G You Will Ever See'". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 21, 2021. Retrieved November 3, 2023.
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